While waiting on my DNA tests to come in, I did a bit of research and found that I could upload my raw DNA from Ancestry (or other vendors) to other companies and get more processing done (depending on what the company specializes in).
With this, there are a few things to keep in mind:
(1) With many of these tests, you are giving up your rights to how your DNA may be used now and in the future. Please be mindful of this and check each company's privacy rules before you hand your DNA over to them if you are at all concerned about this.
(2) Each company processes your DNA differently. There are many variables in play, and it is important to keep that in mind so that you know what you are looking at. For example, at Ancestry, I was told that I have 29% Nigerian, but at another company I was given 38%.
From what I understand, the differences exist in what the company uses to determine your ethnicity. For example, Ancestry will compare your DNA to 3000 individuals known to be indigenous to their lands. While Ancestry has 2,000,000 people to compare you with to determine if you are related, only the 3000 preset individuals are used to determine your ethnicity. I think that only 400 of them are African...so basically there is a lot of room for improvement. This is one reason why I wanted to download my raw DNA data to be processed at other companies. Some other companies compare your DNA to more indigenous people, some check your DNA for other things such as medical information, etc.
(3) Genetic testing is relatively new. As more people get tested and more information is learned about DNA, the results will get more and more detailed in the future. Some companies have more detailed info than others right now, so you may receive results that are a bit more detailed from one company compared to the other. However, if the results do not resemble each other at all, you probably need to call the company and get that straightened out. Ha, ha. Real talk.
...until next time...
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